In public interest: ICCI appeals for shifting of district courts

Chairman of shifting committee insists courts cause disturbance to residents.

The presence of the district courts and offices of the Islamabad Capital Territory Administration in F-8 Markaz poses security threats to the lives of judges and lawyers. The courts are also a source of inconvenience for residents and traders and the government should make necessary arrangements for their urgent shifting from the commercial centre.

These were the views stressed by Muhammad Ejaz Abbasi, the chairman of the Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI)’s Court Shifting Committee while presiding over the body’s first meeting on Saturday.

Abbasi stated that three serious incidents have already occurred in the market in which many lives were lost and business activities adversely affected and it is high time that courts be shifted from this business centre to avoid such incidents.

He appreciated the government’s initiative to shift the offices of the chief commissioner and deputy commissioner from Sector F-8 to Sector G-11/4 and emphasised that the district courts and the remaining ICT offices should also be moved to a safer place.

The participants of the meeting said the construction of the Islamabad High Court building has been pending for some time despite the PC-1 of the project already being approved.

They appealed to the ministry of law and justice and the Capital Development Authority to allocate necessary funds for the early completion of the IHC building so courts could be shifted there. Participants were of the view that the shifting the high court would also facilitate the shifting of the district courts and ICT offices from F-8 Markaz.

Apart from the courts, many schools and offices have also been set up in this important business centre which clogs traffic during rush hours, the participants claimed.

They said the situation has also created parking problems in the area, adding that the local administration should look into all these problems and take necessary measures to address them.

Senior vice president ICCI Khalid Mehmood Chaudhry, former ICCI president Zubair Ahmed Malik, senior ICCI member Khalid Iqbal Malik and vice chairman Naeemur Rehman Piracha also attended the meeting.

On March 3 this year, at least 11 people were killed, including an additional sessions judge, and around 30 were wounded in a gun and bomb attack at the district courts in the market.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2014.